rockonteur · 2017. 11. 11. · rockonteur rockonteur november 2017 november 2017 page page 33...

Rockonteur Volume 27, Issue 11 November 2017

NAME THAT ROCK

The banner photo (above)

will change each month -

can you identify what type of

rock it is? Answer is one last

page but don’t peek until

you’ve tried to guess!

KATHY CLARKE - ROCK BALANCING ARTIST

We’re in for a treat

with Kathy Clarke as our

November guest speaker!

Here’s a short bio about

Kathy from her Amazon

book listing:

She went to work as a

legal secretary in down-

town Los Angeles soon af-

ter receiving her AA de-

gree from Pasadena City

College. It didn't take long

Kathy Clark demonstrating her art at the 2016 Rock & Gem Show.

Photo by Tina Clark.

for her to realize that she

needed a job that would be

more creatively fulfilling.

Starting in high school,

Kathy had found a love for

hair cutting and styling,

and after the birth of the

first of her three children,

she discovered a passion

for photography. So she

turned her time and atten-

(Continued on page 4)

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Meetings & Events 2

Words from the

President 3

Junior Rockhounds 5

Features 6

Announcements 7

List of Club Officers

& Committee Chairs 8

Board Meeting

Minutes 9

General Meeting

Minutes 10

Rockonteur ❖ November 2017 ❖

Santa Lucia Rockhounds (SLR) is a non-profit public benefit corporation with the specific

purpose to promote the study of mineralogy, including (but

not limited to) the fields of lapidary, metal working, jewelry

design and fabrication, geology and conducts field trips for

collecting and education. We encourage learning and good

citizenship in a congenial atmosphere. We respect both pri-

vate and public property, and we strive to protect natural

resources.

We are a member of the California Federation of Miner-

alogical Societies (CFMS) and affiliated with the American

Federation on Mineralogical Societies (AFMS). Santa Lucia

Rockhounds, Inc. is also a member of the American Lands

Access Association (ALAA).

Annual dues are $20 for the first adult and $8 each

for every additional member of the same household. Annual

dues are payable between August 1 and the third Monday

of November, in person at club meetings or by mail to P.O.

Box 1672, Paso Robles, CA 93447.

The Rockonteur

This is the official monthly newsletter of the SLR and an in-

dependent publication containing news and information

consistent with the mission of SLR and of interests to its

members. Circulation is approximately 100 copies per is-

sue.

Member submissions are encouraged and may be

sent to the editor. We reserve the right to accept or refuse

submissions inconsistent with the objectives and purpose of

the SLR. Submissions may be edited as needed without

consent. Deadline are due by midnight of the last day of

the month but early submissions are highly appreciated and

strongly encouraged.

Newsletter Editor/Publisher: Amy Phillips

[email protected]

Website: www.slrockhounds.org

Website Manager: Atascadero Web Designs

[email protected]

MEETINGS & EVENTS

Nov. 18 from 8am - 2pm

Cliff’s Annual Tailgate

Show

Rain or Shine / Vendor Set

up 7 am / 6384 Monterey

Road, Paso Robles

Bring rocks or your rock-

related items to sell from

your own table or tailgate.

Items from the Bob Baker

Collection will be sold at this

event and are entirely differ-

ent from what was sold at

the Club Picnic.

Nov. 20 @ 7pm

General Meeting

Templeton Service Club

601 Main Street, Templeton

Featuring: Kathy Clarke

“Rock Balancing All Over

America”

December 5 @ 7pm

Board Meeting

Rabobank Meeting Room

1025 Las Tablas Road,

Templeton

No Dec. General Meeting

December 18 @ 6:30pm

End of Year Party

Culinary Arts Academy

1900 Golden Hill Rd, Paso

Robles

Buffet dinner - Menu TBD

$15/adult, $10/child 16 and

under

Please pay at the Nov. meet-

ing or mail your checks to:

SLRockhounds, PO Box 1672,

Paso Robles, CA 93447. Pay-

ment must be received by

Dec. 14. "Steal-a-Gift Ex-

change" - Bring a rock relat-

ed gift ($10 value) to partici-

pate - no alcohol as minors

participate in the fun!

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.slrockhounds.org

mailto:[email protected]

Rockonteur ❖ November 2017 ❖ Rockonteur ❖ November 2017 ❖ Page 3

Words from the President

I walked into last month’s General Meeting with a pit in the bottom my stomach. I

didn’t know whether the club would find a President, or if we would have to begin the

dissolution process. Dissolution - what a crazy thought for an organization with over a

hundred members.

For a long while things didn’t look good. The club teetered on the edge of disband-

ing. Then it happened. The Santa Lucia Rockhounds’ spirit pulled through, and the

evening ended with an impressive slate of officers to lead us in 2018.

This is the month to give thanks, so I will begin by recognizing Mary Caparone for

going out on a limb and sharing her reservations about taking on the role of Club Presi-

dent. I must also express my gratitude to Doren Strane for volunteering to share the

duties of this position with her. Together, they will take the helm and continue to pro-

vide the positive energy and stability that our club is known for.

I also appreciate how Club members have supported the round of longer business

meetings we’ve recently had. When I first became President, folks hit me with a lot of

issues bogging down the administrative operations of the club. This includes the Club’s

ongoing turnover and vacancies in both Board member and Committee Chair positions,

resulting in an undue burden having been placed on a handful of individuals to pick up

the slack. It is my hope the work this year's Board and Committee Chairs undertook to

modernize and streamline our administrative

practices has ironed out many of these

wrinkles.

My point? The bulk of the business is

over, the heavy lifting is done! Business

Items will no longer drag down our

meetings and we can focus on the program

speaker; learning about rocks, minerals,

fossils and geology; and connecting with

and learning from other club members.

Give it a go and get yourself to

November's meeting. You will not be

disappointed!

Rockin’ it with thanks,

Tina

Public domain photo courtesy of dreamstime

https://www.dreamstime.com/starry-sky


tion to working in those areas. Now, par-

tial retirement from a long career as a

barber has given her more time to spend

expanding a few of her other long-time

passions: photography (Lady Kate’s Pho-

tography), outdoor adventures, travel,

reading, creative projects, and rock bal-

ancing. One of her favorite activities is

participating as a guest artist at rock bal-

ancing festivals. Yes, there really are such

events! Some of them include Balanced

Art World International Canada, Llano

Earth Art Festival, Back West Celebration

of Stone Balancing, Balanced Art World In-

ternational Italy, to name just a few!

These events are excellent opportunities

for her to combine her passions and expe-

rience creative fulfillment.

Kathy has received numerous awards

for her beautiful and eclectic photography

and has been featured in a wide variety of

publications. She enjoys living on Califor-

nia's beautiful Central Coast with her hus-

band Greg and their two cats.

Check out Tribune article on Kathy:

www.sanluisobispo.com/entertainment/

arts-culture/article39492378.html

(Kathy Clarke—continued from page 1)

Whispers of Wonder (WOW): A Jour-

ney of Beauty and Balance, offers a

wealth of inspired writings and a plethora

of beautiful images that focus on two sub-

jects: breathtaking natural beauty and

creative interaction with nature, primarily

through rock balancing.

In today's rapid-paced world, it is

common to feel stressed and unbalanced.

Although engaging with nature is a power-

ful way to reestablish a sense of balance,

busy lives provide few opportunities to

find and maintain healthy equilibrium. If

only through words and pictures, and

even if only for a few moments, browsing

the pages of WOW restores inner balance

through compelling nuggets of wisdom

coupled with captivating photos.

How we perceive the world is a reflec-

tion of how we perceive ourselves. The

photos and writings of WOW offer fresh

perspectives to ponder, stimulating evolu-

tion in the quest for peaceful, enlightened

existence. The prose is full of heart,

providing points of focus through a soulful

lens. The photographs are windows to in-

sight.

Whether enjoyed from cover to cover or simply opened at a random page, this book will stir the soul and delight the eye. Let this beauty of a book touch your life, and the lives of those who deserve a splendid gift.

Source of article and book review:

https://www.amazon.com/Whispers-

Wonder-Thomas-Youngholm/

dp/0964248832/ref=sr_1_2?

s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1508944948&sr=

1-2

http://bawiint.com/

http://bawiint.com/

https://www.facebook.com/LlanoEarthArtFest/

https://www.facebook.com/LlanoEarthArtFest/

https://www.visitarizona.com/events/nature-and-science/annual-back-west-celebration-of-stone-balancing

https://www.visitarizona.com/events/nature-and-science/annual-back-west-celebration-of-stone-balancing

http://bawiint.com/

http://bawiint.com/

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/entertainment/arts-culture/article39492378.html

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/entertainment/arts-culture/article39492378.html

https://www.amazon.com/Whispers-Wonder-Thomas-Youngholm/dp/0964248832/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1508944948&sr=1-2






By John McCabe, VP of Education

Since the program started five years

ago, we have nine Juniors that achieved

the rank of ROCKHOUND and are listed

in the AFMS Honor role: Samuel Gomez,

Hartley Hall, Kerrigan Jensen, Hobie

Smith, Eva Rodrigues, Ashlyn and Makara

Bean, Amanda and Karen Clark.

We have three Juniors that completed

the requirements at our club picnic and

paperwork for Lapidary Arts and will re-

Source: www.amfed.org/fra/fra_badge.htm

ceive their awards at the November meet-

ing: Sam Terry, Ruth Pritchard and Abigal

Pritchard.

We have five Juniors that completed

the requirements for Rocks & Minerals

and will receive their awards at the No-

vember meeting: Rachel Phillips, Sam

Terry, Ruth and Abigail Pritchard, and

Madison Waterfield.

At the November meeting I plan to

work with the Juniors to complete the re-

quirements for the Collecting badge.

Look at all the badges you can earn as part of the Future Rockhounds of America Badge Program!



By Barbara Bilyeu, Past President

You will hear the term "jasper" a lot in

the rockhound world, and it seems to cov-

er a lot of territory. Part of the reason for

this is that jasper and agate have a close

relationship with each other, and it's often

hard to tell one from the other.

Both materials are a variety of crypto-

crystalline quartz, meaning that they are

rocks consisting of small interlocking crys-

tals of quartz too small to see with the na-

ked eye or even a conventional micro-

scope. But jasper is loaded with second-

ary minerals which make it more opaque,

unlike agate, and these "impurities" can

impart a vast range of colors to jasper.

You can sometimes find both jasper

and agate mixed together in some rocks,

which are sometimes called "jasp-agate".

But lapidaries often call materials that are

brightly colored and patterned "jasper",

when they are really rhyolite, chert, flint,

or other materials. So something called

So, What IS Jasper?

"jasper" may not be jasper at all!

There are many theories on exactly

how jasper is formed, and if you are inter-

ested in exploring some of these theories,

our club library has some books you might

find helpful. But the many amazing varie-

ties of jasper can really stretch the mind

when you try to figure out just how they

formed.

Jasper has been valued by man for

thousands of years. It has been used for

seals, amulets, charms, medicine, artwork

and decorative building. It is mentioned

in both the Old and New Testaments of

the Bible. Its amazing colors and the ease

with which it can be carved and polished

make it a true favorite with lapidaries and

artists. Objects created from fine jasper

have been highly-valued for centuries.

We will be introducing some of the

many varieties of jasper in upcoming

newsletters, in anticipation of jasper being

the featured exhibit focus for our show in

2018. The Central Coast is blessed with

some of the most colorful and beautiful

jasper in the world, and we look forward

to seeing jasper in its many forms at the

show!


WANTED –

HOSPITALITY COORDINATOR

Doren Strane stepped up to be co-

President of the Club. Now he needs

someone to step up and take on hospi-

tality.

Duties:

• Organize club meeting snacks &

beverages and thank members for

bringing

• Procure, store and bring supplies to

club meetings and events

• Offer and provide assistance to club

events involving food and refresh-

ments

MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL DEADLINE

IS NOV. 20

The November meeting is the last day

you have to renew your membership

for the 9/1/2017 to 8/31/2018 cycle.

Members who have not renewed will be

dropped from the club email distribu-

tion list. ($20 for the primary member,

$8 for each additional family member).

As a courtesy, the club will accept re-

newal forms and checks postmarked by

November 30. Forms will be emailed

out to all members who have not yet

renewed the first week of November.

Feature and photo by Wayne Mills,

Ore Cutts Editor

The Monterey Formation is perhaps the

most widely-distributed formation in

Central California. Near San Ardo, it pro-

duces millions of barrels of oil per year.

In Lompoc, it supports the largest diato-

mite quarry (Cellite) in the world. The

Cellite plant has exhibits of some the

amazing fossils that have been found in

the diatomite including large fish, dol-

phins and whales.

The Monterey formation dates to about

15 million years ago, and represents a

range of marine environments including

both deep and shallow water. Near the

Cellite Quarry is OMS member Jeannie

Beattie’s ranch that represents a shal-

lower facies of the Monterey formation.

Here are some of the fossils that she has

found on her ranch.

LOCAL ROCKS

2017

CLUB OFFICERS

President

Tina Clark

805-305-0246 [email protected]

VP Programs

VACANT

VP Education

John McCabe

805-464-0528

[email protected]

VP Communications

VACANT

Secretary

VACANT

Treasurer

Will Persall

805-239-1568

[email protected]

Senior Director

Doren Strane

805.423.5276 [email protected]

Junior Director

Galen Moyer


Past President

Barbara Bilyeu


COMMITTEE

CHAIRS

Auctioneer

Pete Duckworth


CFMS Director

Wayne Mills


Drawings

Karen Clark


Sam Alvis


History

Mike Doherty

805-466-4061

[email protected]

Hospitality

Doren Strane

Library

Barbara Bilyeu

Membership

VACANT

Merchandise

David Nelson


Museum

Barbara Bilyeu

Newsletter Editor/

Publisher

Amy Phillips


Rock & Gem Show

Chair

Tina Clark


2018

CLUB OFFICERS

President

Mary Caparone

805.610.5281

[email protected]

Co-President/

Senior Director

Doren Strane


VP Membership

Galen Moyer


VP Education

John McCabe

805.464.0528

[email protected]

VP Communications

Chris Driesbach


Secretary

Rachael Denny

805.472-9036 [email protected]

Treasurer

Tina Clark


Junior Director

Lisa King


Past President

Barbara Bilyeu


COMMITTEE

CHAIRS

Auctioneer

Pete Duckworth

CFMS Director

Wayne Mills

Drawings

Karen Clark

History

Mike Doherty

Hospitality

VACANT

Library

Barbara Bilyeu

Merchandise

David Nelson

Museum

Barbara Bilyeu

Newsletter Editor/

Publisher

Amy Phillips

Program Coordinator

Amy Phillips

Rock & Gem Show

Chairs

Tina Clark

Kim Noyes


OUTGOING & INCOMING OFFICERS AND CHAIRS

Thank you for your service and dedication to the club!


Attendees:

Board Members: Tina Clark (President),

Barbara Bilyeu (Past President), Doren

Strane ( Senior Director), Galen Moyer

(Junior Director), Committee Chairs:

Wayne Mills, CFMS; David Nelson, Mer-

chandise; Barbara Bilyeu, Museum Ex-

hibits & Library; Doren Strane, Hospital-

ity

Guests: Gene Bilyeu, Lisa King

There was quorum.

The meeting was called to order at 7:00

pm at the Rabobank Community Room

in Templeton. Barbara Bilyeu volun-

teered to take meeting minutes.

Minutes: The minutes for the Board

and General meetings for August, and

the Board meeting for September were

approved, with a motion by Galen Mo-

yer and a second by Doren Strane.

Correspondence: Tina presented the

correspondence which included an infor-

mational request from CFMS, the bank

statement, a bill, and additional items.

Treasurer's Report: Tina gave the

Treasurer's report, and indicated that

we made $980 from the sale of Bob

Baker's donation at the picnic. She has

added a line to the budget to record in-

come from donations made to the club.

President's Report: Tina reported the

sad news that club secretary Cathy

McIntosh's husband passed away re-

cently and she is stepping down from

her position as Secretary. The group

discussed finding someone to fill in for

her. VP of Communications, Diane

Brooks, has resigned due to changes in

her life. Chris Driesbach has agreed to

fill this position.

Our new club website is up and run-

ning and members are encouraged to

check it out at www.slrockhounds.org.

There are still features Chris Driesbach

will be working on adding with our website

maintenance contractor.

Programs Report: Although we have no

VP of Programs, John Hollenbeck has pro-

grams lined up for the next several

months. Doren Strane will be doing a gold

sniping presentation for the month of Oc-

tober. Kathy Clarke will do a program on

rock-stacking in November.

CFMS Report: Wayne Mills discussed a

club information questionnaire sent out by

CFMS and also reported that he would

check our 2017 newsletters for articles to

send in to CFMS for the newsletter com-

petition.

Membership Report: An application for

membership by Richard Reynolds was ap-

proved by the Board.

Museum Report: Barbara plans to attend

Pioneer Day at Pioneer Museum on Oct.

14 to represent the club and answer ques-

tions about our club exhibit at the Muse-

um. She would welcome anyone who

wants to help. She requested postcards

to hand out to anyone who is interested in

our club. David Nelson brought a publica-

tion by National Geographic suitable for

the Juniors, that he wanted to show John

McCabe, who was unable to be at the

meeting.

Bob Baker Collection Donation:

We discussed and agreed to implement a

policy that anytime materials from the

Bob Baker Donation are to be sold, club

members will be notified so they have a

chance to buy them. Items not sold at any


OCT. 5, 2017 BOARD MEETING MINUTES

http://www.slrockhounds.org


specific event will be stored in the club

shed for future sale.

End-of-the-year Party: We are seeking

venue options for the party on Dec. 18,

and will present them to the members to

vote on at the October meeting.

Shed clean-out: Those involved will

meet at the club storage unit at 9:00 am

on Nov. 4. We plan to list the tables on

Craig's List and sell them for $10 each.

We will store the materials from the Baker

collection at the shed, so people who are

storing them are asked to bring them that

day, if possible.

Officer Election: We still need nominees

for the following officer positions: Presi-

dent, Secretary and VP of Membership.

It is imperative that people step up to

take on these responsibilities, or the club

may not be able to operate going forward.

(These positions can be filled by two peo-

ple working together as co-officers, if that

makes it easier...)

Committee positions: We still need

people to fill the following committee posi-

tions: Newsletter editor and Programs co-

ordinator.

Show: The Event Center has confirmed

our show dates as April 21-22. The

show theme will be Jasper, colorful speci-

mens of which abound in our area. Many

members have already stepped up to take

on responsibility for the positions that

need to be filled. We still need demon-

strators, however!

The meeting adjourned at 9:18 PM.

Submitted by Barbara Bilyeu in the ab-

sence of Cathy McIntosh.

(Board Minutes continued from page 9)

The meeting opened at 7:04 pm with

the Pledge of Allegiance (Tom Wylie did

the badge check). Afterwards, Rachel

Phillips led the singing of "Happy Birth-

day" and "Happy Anniversary" to those

Club members celebrating these events in

the month of October.

Club President Tina Clark welcomed

everyone to the meeting, and invited first-

time visitors to introduce them-

selves. There were several members of

the San Luis Obispo club present, who an-

nounced that they are having a show at

the Veterans Hall in Cambria on October

28th and 29th. Tina also welcomed Kristie

and Sam Terry, Christina Lievanos, Slayde

and Kayden Franklin and Richard Reynolds

as new members, and reminded everyone

that the November meeting is the dead-

line for membership renewals.

The Club's new website is up and run-

ning, though there may still be a few

kinks to iron out, and Club members can

post pictures of their collections on the

Collections page. Tina thanked Dianne

Brooke, Barbara Bilyeu, David Nelson, and

Chris Driesbach for their help with this

project.

Tina also had special thanks for Galen

Moyer, who hosted the Club's annual pic-

nic and demonstration, for John Hollen-

beck, who did the barbecuing, and for Da-

vid Nelson, John McCabe, Barbara Bilyeu,

and everyone else who contributed to

what was a very successful event. Don

Huntington and Don Pierce received spe-

cial thanks for coordinating the Club's re-

cent field trip to San Ardo.

Cliff Brewen will be holding his annual

tailgate sale on Saturday, November

18th. The Club will have a table at this


OCT. 16, 2017 GENERAL

MEETING MINUTES


OCT. 16, 2017 GENERAL MEETING MINUTES

event, and will be selling items from Bob

Baker's collection, possibly including

sagenite and Nipomo agate.

On a sadder note, Tina announced that

Club member Dennis McIntosh passed

away on October 2nd. In light of this, his

wife, Cathy, will be stepping down from

her position as Club Secretary. Dianne

Brooke has resigned from her position as

Vice President of Communications, but

Chris Driesbach is willing to take over the

position starting next month.

John McCabe announced that several

of the Junior members earned their Lapi-

dary badges at the picnic, and that they

would be finishing up the Rocks and Min-

erals badge tonight.

The list of nominees for next month's

Board election is as follows:

Treasurer: Tina Clark

Vice-President of Education: John McCabe

Vice-President of Communications:

Chris Driesbach

Senior Director: Doren Strane

Junior Director: Lisa King

Past President: Barbara Bilyeu

Missing from the list are nominees for

Vice-President of Membership, Secretary,

and, most important of all, President. Af-

ter some serious discussion, Mary Capa-

rone agreed to serve as President if she

could have some assistance with technical

matters. Doren Strane agreed to assist

her. Galen Moyer volunteered to be Vice-

President of Membership, and Rachael

Denny agreed to serve as Secretary. Lisa

King will be assisting the Vice President of

Membership. Amy Phillips has agreed to

publish the newsletter, and she also vol-

unteered to serve as Program Coordinator.

The next item of discussion was the

Club's annual Holiday Party. The mem-

bers were asked if they would prefer to

(Continued from page 10)

have the party at the Culinary Arts Acade-

my, (as we have done in years past), at

Round Table Pizza, or as a pot-luck at the

Community Center. The majority opinion

favored the Culinary Arts Academy.

The next Board meeting will be on

Tuesday, November 7th, at the Rabobank

in Templeton, at 7:00 pm. All members

are invited to attend.

Pete Duckworth announced that the

silent auction features items from Bob

Baker's collection. Tina Clark thanked eve-

ryone who brought a snack to share. Bar-

bara Bilyeu announced that the library has

a number of books on gold and gold min-

ing, in keeping with this month's pro-

gram. The Guest Rocks included fish fos-

sils, shark teeth, petrified wood, California

and Oregon opals, and other interesting

things. Tina encouraged everyone to take

home the condiments left over from the

picnic.

At the November meeting, Kathy

Clarke will give a demonstration of rock

balancing, and December is the end of the

year party. January is the Club's annual

show and tell, and in February, John

McCabe will give a presentation on Aus-

tralian opals.

The featured speaker for the evening

was Doren Strane, who gave a very in-

formative presentation on gold sniping, a

form of small-scale gold mining that in-

volves scraping the sediment out of the

rocks on the bottom of rivers. Doren

brought along examples of the tools used

in gold sniping, and some samples of the

gold that he has obtained in this way.

At 8:26 pm, the meeting adjourned for

refreshments, the drawing, and the silent

auction, dispersing before 9:00 P.M.

Submitted by Rachael Denny, Acting Sec-

retary.

NAME THAT ROCK Depicted on the cover is “The Virgin Rainbow” - “one of the world’s finest opals, shines

reds, greens, blues, purples, and more depending on how it is viewed. This is a rare

multi-colored gem widely believed to be the world’s finest opal. The gem was discov-

ered John Dunstan, an Australian opal miner, in 2003 in Coober Pedy, a remote out-

back town which is known for its high quantity of opals. Opal, a form of silica, are simi-

lar to quartz but contain water and typically occur in South Australia in rocks affected

by weather about 1.8 to 70 million years ago.” Source: www.kickassfacts.com/top-10-

minerals-of-the-week-part-1

P.O. Box 1672

Paso Robles, CA 93447

http://www.kickassfacts.com/top-10-minerals-of-the-week-part-1/

http://www.kickassfacts.com/top-10-minerals-of-the-week-part-1/

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